Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Rory McIlroy among those to miss Masters cut

Brooks Koepka and Dustin Johnson were among the biggest stars who missed the cut at the 85^th playing of the Masters.

The 36-hole cut – only the top 50 and ties moved on – came at 3 over. That number also sent home Rory McIlroy, Sergio Garcia, Patrick Cantlay and 31 others from the field of 88.

Among those not heading home is Bryson DeChambeau, who rebounded from a 76 on Thursday to post a 67 on Friday. Also playing the weekend: Phil Mickelson, who made the cut on the number.

But many other big stars weren’t so lucky.

Masters: Leaderboard | Photos | Player Profiles | Round 3 Tee Times

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Here’s a closer look at some notables not playing this weekend.

Dustin Johson +5

For just the second time, World No. 1 Dustin Johnson missed the cut in the Masters but he’ll be back on Sunday. As defending champ, he’ll be in Butler Cabin to help the 2021 champ slip on the green jacket.

Brooks Koepka +6

For the first time since the 2013 Open Championship, four-time major champion Brooks Koepka missed a cut in a major. With rounds of 74-75, Koepka’s string of 24 consecutive cuts made in major championship starts came to an end at Augusta National Golf Club.

The tournament was Koepka’s first in six weeks as he dealt with neck and knee injuries – he had surgery March 16 that reattached a ligament and cleaned up damage caused by a dislocated kneecap in his right knee that was caused by a fall.

He walked gingerly around the mountainous terrain of Augusta National and dealt with swelling in his right knee throughout the week. His powerful game was muted somewhat as he mustered just five birdies that could not offset 10 bogeys.

“How disappointed do you think I am? I worked my ass off just to get here, and then to play like this is pretty disappointing,” Koepka said. “Putter was ice cold, didn’t make any putts. I don’t want to say the speed was off, maybe the reads a little bit. Maybe the start line. I’m not quite sure. They felt good coming off the face, but they didn’t even sniff it.”

Koepka, who tied for second in the 2019 Masters behind Tiger Woods, said he wouldn’t have played this week if it weren’t the Masters.

“So, I’ll take a nice long break after this,” he said. “Way I look at it, I have two more days to do rehab that I probably wouldn’t get if I was out here, and I’ll get ready for the PGA.”

Rory McIlroy +8

For the seventh consecutive year, the four-time major champion did not complete the career Grand Slam at Augusta National. McIlroy, who made just four birdies in 36 holes, has not been the same since the PGA Tour returned in June following a 13-week break due to the COVID-19 global pandemic. He admitted his swing went awry when he tried to chase distance after seeing what Bryson DeChambeau was doing. He hasn’t won since the 2019 WGC-HSBC Champions. The highlight for McIlroy at this Masters was when he hit his father with an errant approach in the first round – at least the two laughed about it.

Patrick Cantlay +8

The world No. 10 was uncharacteristically out of form as he made double on both of the par-3s on the back nine in the first round and four bogeys in his opening 18 holes. The poor start was too much to overcome.

Matt Kuchar +4

Heading down Magnolia Lane, Kuchar was coming off a third-place finish in the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play and a tie for 12^th in the Valero Texas Open. But an opening 78 that included five bogeys and two double bogeys was too much to overcome and he missed the weekend by one shot.

Fred Couples +13

One of the coolest guys in golf wasn’t able to conjure up some magic this year like in years past. But Couples, 61, did accomplish a major deed this week – he donated a persimmon wood from his 1992 Masters victory to the club to fill out Augusta National’s unique collection.

Jason Day +12

The struggles continued for the 2015 PGA champion, who now has just one top-10 in his last 10 starts. He made just four birdies this week and he’s not excelling in one facet of his game.

Bernhard Langer +7

The two-time Masters champion and ageless wonder had made his last three cuts at Augusta National and inspired his peers by playing so well despite being in his 60s. But the length of the course is catching up with the member of the World Golf Hall of Fame and he made just three birdies in his two rounds.

Sergio Garcia +4

The 2017 Masters champion said he felt like he went 12 rounds with a heavyweight boxing champion in the first round and needed to rest. Looked like the rest did him good as he made three birdies in his first five holes but made just two more the rest of the way and bogeyed two of his last four holes to miss by one.